SUNDAY BRIEFING

 

Weekend headline news

                                 – July 9

 

Cluster bomb controversy

Portugal has long condemned the use of cluster bombs, a stockpile of which the United States is now planning to give to Ukraine to help the war effort. Among the many countries to ratify a convention against cluster bombs in 2015, Portugal will be able to discuss the US plan at a NATO summit in Lithuania this coming Tuesday and Wednesday.

Sweden joining NATO?

Portugal fully supports the bid by Sweden to join NATO, which the US president and the Swedish prime minister sought to push forward at their meeting in the White House last Wednesday. It is of great security importance given Russia’s war in Ukraine. All 31 NATO leaders agree with this except Turkey and Hungary. President Erdogan of Turkey continues to block the move, arguing that Sweden has harboured members of a Kurdish terrorist group. Hungary is expected to accept Sweden’s membership if Turkey concedes.

Quitting an energy treaty

The European Commission has formally proposed that the EU and all its member states, including Portugal, withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) in “a coordinated and orderly manner”.  On Friday, the EU Green Deal chief, Frans Timmermans, said: “It’s time for Europe to withdraw from this treaty and to put all our focus on building an efficient and competent energy system that promotes and protects renewable energy investments”. 

Prepared for wildfires

Wildfires this summer will be “more difficult” than last year’s, but Portugal is prepared, said the president of the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection (ANEPC) on Friday. Last year’s severe wildfires burnt more than 105,000 acres (42,500 hectares) of forested land. 

More strikes during Pope’s visit

Portuguese teachers, railway workers, police officers and garbage collectors are planning protests and strikes during the World Youth Day celebrations in Lisbon. Pope Francis will be among the estimated one million Catholic attendees at the event over the first week of August.  

Shorter working week

Nearly 40% of Portugal’s private sector businesses have signed up to experiment with a four-day instead of the traditional five-day working week. A government-funded programme will take place over the next six months to test if employees can achieve 100% productivity targets while being paid 100% for 80% time worked. Successful pilot 100-80-100 projects have been conducted in Ireland, Brussels, the UK, the US, and New Zealand.

Sun, sea and silence

Most beachgoers in Portugal want to enjoy peace and quiet, which is why fines of up to €36,000 will be imposed for anyone playing their music too loudly this summer. So best keep your mobile music device shut off altogether when you are on the sand.  President Marcelo hospitalised

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa fainted and was rushed to hospital by ambulance from a university visit in Almada on Wednesday. He reported experiencing hypothermia, dizziness, nausea, and extreme fatigue after a light lunch. The hospital visit was later described as “a precautionary measure”.

WEDNESDAY BRIEFING

 

Mid-week headline news 

                                  – July 5

Widespread wildfire dangers

Thirty-five Portuguese municipalities in six districts from Bragança in the north to the Algarve in the south are at “maximum” risk of wildfires, the national meteorological office warned yesterday. A total of about 80 municipalities across Portugal, including the whole of the Alentejo region, are reckoned to be at “very high risk”. It is expected to be a worse year for wildfires than in 2022, mainly because of the drought, and winds in the Algarve.

Hunger amomg Alentejo farm animals

The drought situation in the Baixo Alentejo region is so severe that many farm animals have little food or water. Fodder, when it exists, has tripled in price. Luca News has reported that farmers are facing “a nightmare” this summer because of a lack of hay. The lowest level of dam water in the whole country is in the Monte da Rocha reservoir in Ourique, which provides water for the entire Alentejo Baixa. It is down to 9% capacity. In the last 10 years it has never reached full capacity. 

Electricity from Renewables

In the first half of this year, wind power has provided 25% of Portugal’s electricity needs, and hydroelectric sources 23%. Renewable production in total has contributed 61%. These figures were reported yesterday by the national electricity company RENS.

Grossly inadequate housing 

Municipalities across the country have identified 77,000 families living in “undignified” conditions. Parliament heard this yesterday from the housing minister, who noted that almost 84% of Portugal’s municipalities are developing local housing strategies under the so-called 1^st Right programme.

Harmful bacteria in water supplies

A new study has concluded that microplastics polluting some domestic water systems are accumulating more pathological bacteria resistant to antibiotics. The results of the study were released on Monday by the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of Coimbra.

The Portuguese press  

The front pages in the main Portuguese newspapers so far this week have been reporting on a court case about the shocking death of a young girl, lack of workers in the tourist industry, workplace harassment, and preparations for the World Youth Day mass event in Lisbon, with concerns that rubbish collectors in the capital may go on strike.

 Weekend weather

It is expected to be slightly cooler in the Algarve with highs of 31C on Saturday and 34C on Sunday. It will probably heat up with temperatures returning to 37C on Tuesday. Lisbon temperatures will probably be 27-28 degrees. Similar temperatures are forecasts for the north of the country with grey skies and a little rain. The central interior areas are likely to experience 31-33 degrees over the weekend, but up to 38C by the end of next week. 

  

  

 

SUNDAY BRIEFING

Weekend headline news 

                                 – July 2

 

Not so peaceful Portugal

The Global Peace Index 2023 has placed Portugal as the seventh most peaceful country in the world.  This has dropped for the third year running and is at its lowest position since 2015. The GPI annually covers nearly all of the countries in the world and uses many indicators in making its assessment. The top three most peaceful countries this year are Iceland, Denmark and Ireland.

Excessive air pollution

The European Union Court of Justice has again declared that Portugal has failed to comply with EU rules on air quality. Nitrogen oxide (NO2) levels have exceeded the limits in parts of the country causing a serious health hazard. This is due mainly to road traffic, especially diesel vehicles.

 Paedophile prevention

A group that is working on investigating and preventing the sexual abuse of children and vulnerable adults within the Portuguese Catholic Church is reportedly now directly linked to prosecutors in a greater effort to eliminate this criminality. Meanwhile, a shocking report in the Daily Mail in the UK reports that paedophiles are using AI to create and sell life-like child sexual abuse images.

Inflation lower last month

Portugal’s prime minister on Friday welcomed the news that inflation had dropped by 7.6% in June to 3.4%, saying that wage increases are not putting pressure on this rate.  The government hopes that new rules for withholding tax, which came into force yesterday, will ensure that an increase in gross income corresponds to an increase in net income.

Closer links with France

France and Portugal have promised to deepen ties in cultural, educational, technical, and scientific sectors. This was announced at the end of high-level discussions between officials of the two countries on Wednesday. Greater investment in languages and cooperation in maritime affairs were specifically mentioned. 

World Youth Day

The number of people from around the world registered to take part in World Youth Day, which is scheduled to take place next month in Lisbon, has reached about 300,000. Portugal has the fourth highest number registered. This is a Catholic event with Pope Francis scheduled to attend.

Don’t miss the ‘supermoons’!  

The first of four consecutive ‘supermoons’ this summer will light up the night sky tomorrow, July 3. The three others will occur on August 1, August 30 and September 29. ‘Supermoons’ appear to be bigger and brighter than normal full moons because their orbit is closer to the Earth when they reach their fullest phase. 

National Portuguese press:

Top headlines in recent days have included a wide range of stories about the rising cost of living.  

Local English newspapers:

The Algarve Daily News leads with the president of the republic’s proposal to end the obligation to display an insurance stamp on the windscreen of your car.

Among the Portugal News main stories: “Calls to bring an end to dolphins in captivity”.

The Portugal Resident emphasises that “Portugal won’t be bullied into cutting back on social security measures...”

WEDNESDAY BRIEFING

Mid-week headline news 

                              – June 28

 

Emergency robot response

The Ministry of internal Administration has announced plans to use the artificial intelligence service ChatGPT to answer 112 emergency calls in Portugal from 2025. Officials have said that using ChatGPT in this way would be entering uncharted waters, but hope it will optimise the work of the emergency service and make it more efficient. At present, it sometimes takes five to six minutes to get a human response to 112 calls.

Ever-present fire risks

The National Meteorological Institute issued a warning yesterday that the risk of wildfires in most of the Algarve was at the maximum level. As if the heat wave this week was not enough of a reminder, the prime minister warned that “we must be aware that fire is a risk and a risk that is present and will not disappear”. The 70 forested areas across Portugal most affected by rural fires need the establishment of an integrated land management scheme, according to the Minister of the Environment and climate action.  Meanwhile, smoke from fires un Canada has been passing at high altitude over Portugal and other parts of Western Europe. It is not having any effect at ground level in this country.

Rural police checks

As of yesterday, the GNR police have stepped up patrols and checks on farms and forestry plantations in order to prevent possible “human trafficking and theft, and promote the safe use of vehicles”, reports Luca News.

Overweight children

A new study has concluded that last year almost a third of six to eight-year-old children in Portugal were overweight. The number in the same cateogory described as ‘obese’ was 13.5%.  

Madeleine search fails

The analysis of mitems found next to the Arade reservoir during last month’s police search have shown no connection to the 16-year-old disappearance of Madeleine McCann. It was hoped evidence would be found to trace Madeleine’s body and implicate the so-called “prime suspect”, Christian B, who frequented the area in 2007. The German police who initiated the search have reported said they are “disappointed” that the items found “have not proven to be of any use”.

Climate-affected farmers

The European Commission has proposed to allocate €11 million in support for Portuguese farmers who have been affected by drought.  A total of €330 million is to be given to farmers across 22 EU member states affected by adverse climate conditions.

Combating drug traffickers

So far this year Portuguese police have seized almost the same quantity of illegal drugs as in the whole of 2022. This has led to the criminal investigation police (PJ) warning on Monday of the need for more resources to combat drug traffickers. On the same day as this announcement it was revealed that eight men were arrested and a tonne of cocaine seized from a sailboat that ended up sinking north of the Azores.

 

 

SUNDAY BRIEFING

 

Weekend headline news 

                             – June 25

 

Strikes next week

The secretary-general of Portugal’s largest trade union federation has predicted a national day of strikes and demonstrations all across the country next Wednesday. Workers in various sectors are demanding wage increases.

Expanding  tourism

The inland areas of Portugal, which are much less well-known to visitors compared with Lisbon, Porto or the Algarve, “can and should be inspiring for the transformation of tourism”, declared the secretary of state for tourism, commerce and services on Friday.  There are already measures in place to make this come true, he added.

Capital of Culture

Portugal’s prime minister has said that the designation of Évora in the Alentejo as the European Capital of Culture 2027 is an opportunity for the development of the region and he country through investment in culture.

Gambling addicts

A surprisingly large number of Portuguese people are addicted to gambling. An official study has found that 55% of Portuguese citizens – the majority of them men – have admitted to being addicted to gambling. That’s an increase of 7.6% from a similar survey in 2017.

Other addictions

The prevalence of tobacco consumption in Portugal increased from 48.8% in 2017 to 51% in 2022, according to a report by Luca News. The consumption of alcohol increased from 49.1% to 56.4% over the same period, while the use of sedatives was 13%, down from 22% in 2021.

New tax idea

The Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) has presented a bill to parliament proposing a reduction of personal income tax and VAT for families. At the same time the PCP wants more taxation on companies and a tax on transitions to tax havens.

New Fatima saint

Pope Francis has signed a decree to advance the beatification of Sister Lucia, the eldest of the three children said to have witnessed the apparitions at Fatima in 1917. The Church will now have to approve a miracle attributed to her before the process of sainthood can be completed.

In the papers

The Portugal News announces that from July only electric buses will be operating in the city of Évora.

The Portugal Resident reports that human trafficking is a “time bomb under Portugal’s feet”.

The Algarve Daily News has led with: a story about a man who killed his wife, stayed with her corpse all night and surrendered himself the next day.

 

 

WEDNESDAY BRIEFING

Mid-week headline news – June 21

Heatwaves coming

Meteorologists are forecasting a heat wave to start tomorrow, Thursday, with temperatures rising to 40C or more in the interiors of the Algarve, the Alentejo and the Tagus Valley. It is expected to be hot, though, less so, across the rest of the country. The heat wave is expected to last for weeks.

Don’t waste water!

A national campaign to raise awareness about the need to save water has been launched in the Algarve region. Further droughts are predicted across the country as summer sets in. The levels of water in reservoirs have continued to drop despite recent rainfalls.

Solar farm concerns

Amnesty International Portugal has accused the government of a lack of transparency and an absence of dialogue with local inhabitants in the building of photovoltaic power plants in the Alentejo and the Algarve in a document that reveals concerns about the local economy, according to Luca News.

Alagoas Brancos latest

Portugal’s minister of the environment and climate action has been asked by a group of environmental organisations to intervene in the long and bitter dispute over a plan, backed by the Lagoa municipal authority, to allow a development to be built on the Alagoas Brancas wetland situated on the verge of the city. The minister has been asked to ensure immediate protection for this Algarve wetland, which is rich in plant and bird life.

Short-term lets

Restrictions on short-term lets of particular interest to holidaymakers are proving to be a highly contentious way of tackling the housing crisis for local residents.  The main opposition Social Democratic Party has proposed the elimination what it calls “the most damaging” aspects of the government’s initiative.

Lisbon Airport improvements

The government is finishing its assessment of proposals to improve operations at Lisbon Airport, the minister of infrastructure said this Wednesday morning.  A commitment to alleviate difficulties this summer has been guaranteed.

Worst port pollution

The ports of Lisbon and Funchal in Madeira are among the top 10 ports in Europe with the highest levels of pollution associated with cruise ships. This is according to a study released on Monday by the environmental association Zero.

Also, on the front pages

Other top stories in the major Portuguese newspapers so far this week include: Illegal immigration, betting scandals, a possible tax break for landlords, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s reaction to winning his 200^th international cap.

 

 

Portugal helps reduce AI risks

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a global revolution and has brought us well into the dawn of a new era. It is at present hugely helpful in many respects, but very difficult to comprehend while almost certainly set to impose heavier and unpredictable risks as it becomes more advanced.

The deep complexities of AI will be discussed at the 1st International Conference on Explainable Artificial Intelligence, which will be held in Lisbon next month.

Much confusion and many myths surround AI, which is essentially a man-made technological machine. It got properly underway in the late 1950s and, unknown to most of us, it was developed so that by the mid-70s it enabled computers to store much more information.  AI machines were beginning to think in much the same way as their human creators, though without any emotion. All sorts of knowledge, fast problem-solving and the interpretation of spoken language became readily available to all with a mobile phone or an ordinary computer.

AI is now commonplace, a normal part of our everyday lives. It is central to our casual or in-depth searches for information. It is good at quickly finding solutions for problems that non-AI machines are incapable of coping with. Office workers access more information more quickly and thus sometimes reduce working hours or staff numbers. Companies also profit from AI’s ability to allow us to arrange travel plans, shop online, check the best medications for specific purposes, or simply apply for job offers or citizenship. Such advanced conceptions as safe AI cars with no need for a driver at the wheel are well on the way.

However, there are growing concerns about possible pragmatic and ethical matters. Leading experts have different views on how these risks may further develop and what can be done to control them. This emphasises the importance of next month’s conference in Lisbon (July 26-28), as well as a number of other AI conferences and workshops in Portugal, both this year and next. They will bring together various academic specialists from Europe, North and South America, Asia, Africa and Australia. Hopefully, these and similar get-togethers across the world will help wise up the rest of us on the precautions we need to take now and in the future to better understand and update the changes of AI.

During Rishi Sunak’s recent visit to Washington he announced that the UK would host the first global summit on AI regulation later this year. At the recent G7 summit in Japan the group discussed and set in motion the creation of an intergovernmental forum called the “Hiroshima Process”.  Other major recent events have included an open letter with hundreds of signatures from some of the biggest names in technology and AI’s most distinguished academics.

In June 2019, the Portuguese government presented an ‘AI Portugal 2030’ strategy aimed at fostering the best public and private use of artificial intelligence throughout the next decade. Under Portugal’s presidency of the European Union in 2021, the focus was on the adoption of the first EU law to maintain transparency and respect for AI users’ rights.

This week, the European Parliament produced a landmark draft law that is the world’s most far-reaching attempt to address the potentially harmful effects of artificial intelligence. If passed, the law will be an example to leaders around the world of how to extensively control AI, or in the words of the New York Times, “to put guardrails on the rapidly expanding technology.”

Among other things, the EU’s draft AI Act would ban or severely restrict the use of technology in biometric surveillance such as facial recognition software, while requiring makers of AI systems such as ChatGPT to disclose all their AI-generated data content.

The draft EU law is not expected to be passed until later this year. Meanwhile, the risks already presenting themselves involve consumer data privacy, disinformation, and biased programming, as well as inadequate legal regulations. Many companies simply disregard data privacy as there are insufficient national and international regulations on this. AI is only as correct and unbiased as the data fed into it by human programmers.   

Future issues could include AI robots being programmed to cause different sorts of serious damage. The technologies could be used to provide benefits to one side or the other in major international disputes or warfare.

Much of the control of AI will be down to the expertise and management of the younger generation, which is why the AI Portugal 2030 initiative is so important. It seeks to support how students and young graduates grapple with the complexities of this subject.

As to the notion that AI robots may eventually take over the world, thia is far from science fiction.  Many scientists, including the renowned evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, believe it to be very possible.